Four people drown over two days as heat waves continues to grip Ireland

Four young people have drowned over a two day period in Ireland, as a heat wave continues to grip the country.
Photo by: Rare Irish Stuff

Four young people have lost their lives in drowning accidents, over a two day period in Ireland, as a heat wave continues to grip the country.

On Thursday a young man died while swimming in a lake near Strokestown, Co Roscommon.

He has been named locally as Daniel Harding, 19, of Hazelwood Park in Elphin, RTE reports.

Also on Thursday an 11-year-old boy died after he got into difficulty while swimming at Youghal beach in Co Cork. A 21-year-old woman and 17-year-old boy died in separate drowning incidents on Wednesday.

Irish Water Safety Chief Executive John Leech has urged parents to ensure their children are always supervised when swimming. Irish Water Safety report that 147 people drowned in 2012, 19 more than in 2011.

Forecasters predicted Friday that the warm weather will continue this weekend.

"Temperatures are sliding back a bit and we won't have the wall-to-wall sunshine that we've had but we'll still have temperatures in the mid-to-high 20s," Met Eireann forecaster Joan Blackburn told the Irish Independent.

"We'll go from hot to warm weather."

On Thursday, Shannon Airport was Ireland’s hotspot with a temperature of 85 degrees F (29.5C).

Retailers around the country has reported a huge increase in the sale of fans. Department store Arnotts in Dublin sold out of electrical fans on Thursday.

"It's the biggest rush they've ever seen in Ireland. One man came in and bought six Dyson fans at €400 each for his office," a spokesperson said.